Spiffy:

Iffy:

Not much to worry about right now, but Ubisoft might be reaching too high.

When it comes to gaming on Xbox Live, the experience is essentially the same for every game: put the disc in, connect to Live, play some games, and get off when you're done. You really don't earn anything for playing the game online, aside from gaining the satisfaction of beating up on other people. While some titles offer stat tracking, allowing you to compare yourself to your friends, there really aren't any games that take the approach commonly seen in PC-based MMOs. Games like World of Warcraft and Everquest let you carry your character over from one session to another, building up their skills along the way. The more you play, the faster you'll level up. All of that is about to change, however, with the upcoming release of the next game in Ubisoft's hugely popular Rainbow Six series.

It probably sounds pretty funny to compare the deep RPG elements found in most MMOs to the considerably shallower first person shooter genre, but Ubisoft is attempting to shatter gamers' perceptions of what can be done to enhance the core experience. While you still have the option of just hopping onto Live for the usual fast-paced Rainbow Six action, the developers have added a brand new mode to the game, and it's sure to be one that will change the face of Xbox Live as we know it. Although there's a possibility that the game's developers are setting their sights too high, it's great to see them taking a chance on something as potentially groundbreaking as this.

Called Career Mode, the new system will basically allow you to create a character from scratch, customize him or or her to your heart's content, then take your new avatar online to do battle against other people's soldiers. While that might not sound like much at first, once you delve into the specifics, it's easy to see that this will be a big deal. The basic character creator will allow you to choose from a huge range of facial and hair options, as well as an equally impressive array of uniforms that can be set up with whatever type of camouflage you might like. You've got a bunch of headgear and goggle choices as well, inlcluding different types of gas masks and thermal or night vision goggles.

The game's producer said that they wanted make the customization as easy as possible, since your visual representation plays a large part in the game. Combined with the streamlined logo creator, you can ensure that clans will look like a real team, and the wide variety of faces will allows players to identify each other on sight. Once you dress and name your new character, you'll be playing with him every time you login, though you'll still be able to change his look and other attributes. Only one character is allowed per gamertag, so if you aren't happy, you'll have to start over. While his look doesn't really matter in the long run, there's one thing that does: his specialty.